This chapter... is quite epic. Especially with a certain fight scene that will occur here. I think you all know which fight scene I speak of~. You have been warned.

... Don't judge me; I've always wanted to say that, okay?

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece or Kingdom Hearts. I do not own Guthrie and I kind of own Allen.

*OPENING*

(Lala intro)
(Xion & Guthrie come down sliding panels one at a time, followed by Nami next to Xion & Ussop next to Guthrie. Nami shows the Log Pose to Xion, telling her where to go, while Ussop looks pompous while Guthrie shrugs his demeanor. Nami & Ussop are replaced by Zoro & Sanji respectively, and glare daggers at one another as Xion & Guthrie push them away from another. The two are replaced by Chopper and Robin respectively. Chopper dives into Xion's arms as she does a spin hug with him, while Guthrie observes the book Robin is reading with interest. The two are replaced by Allen & Chirithy, with Allen patting Xion's back, grinning at her as she blushes a bit, while Chirithy stands on a barrel, both he and Guthrie causing sparks to shoot at each other from their eyes. The two disappear, and Luffy appears between Xion and Guthrie, grabbing their shoulders and pulling them in as he grins. The two look at one another, and grin, as the background scene shifts to them being on the Going Merry, with the rest of the crew behind them.)

Hello, goodbye to repetition
We cannot be stop
Time to go around to our
Happy days, happy days
(The scene shifts to the sky, with the title of the story appearing)

Hello, goodbye, it cannot be stopped
Because there is desire
(Scene shifts to the Straw Hats on the ship, with Luffy & Ussop fishing, Nami looking at the Log Pose, Zoro sleeping on the crow's nest, Xion helping Chopper with medicine while Chirithy watched, Robin reading her book, Allen practicing his dancing, and Sanji cooking with help from Guthrie.)

It's a journey that does not end
Keeps going, going!
(Xion steps back, wiping her forehead, then looking ahead to the endless sea beyond, wondering what lies ahead.)

You, are
Being shaken by your ragged feet
(Panning through a screenshot of Kokoro, Chimney and Gonbe and Yokozuna, to the Galley-La crew, to the members of the Franky Family, with Franky in front of them, to the masked members of CP9.)

Still, still
No one has much of anything!
(Nico Robin turns and walks away to the tower in Eniss Lobby, with Jabra, Kumadori and Fukuro silhouetted above, followed by Spandam, then Xaldin and Saïx. This shifts to the angered faces of Guthrie, Luffy and Xion.)

I feel like I can fly
I can fly anywhere
Whenever I'm with you
(The trio run through the town of Eniss Lobby, striking numerous marines in their way, while the screen circles around the trio, ending with them standing in the middle of their Straw Hat crew (and Sniper King) on top of the building, facing Robin, Franky and CP9.)

No matter where we are
I feel like I am
Shivering everywhere
(The two Keyblade wielders thrust their Keyblades up at the villains, only to be interfered by the two Organization XIII members. They leap towards them, with Luffy and the rest of the Straw Hats following in pursuit. CP9, led by Saïx, Xaldin & Leopard Lucci, leap at them, ready to clash.)

Together when I am with you
If you clench strongly
(Through all the battles of the Straw Hats, Second Gear Luffy starts fighting Leopard Lucci, with Xion fighting Saïx as hard as she could.)

No matter what happens
I'm moving forward
(Guthrie fights and parries off Xaldin, calling out to Robin with a free hand raised to her, as she stands there in the pitch black darkness.)

Together when I am with you
If you clench strongly
(Robin looks back at him, then closes her eyes as she recalls the memories of Ohara. A tear falls from her eyes, hitting a ground, which turns the darkness into the open sea and sky. More teardrops fall, forming white birds that represent each Straw Hat as they soar in the sky together.)

No, no
No matter where we are
I feel like I can fly
(The birds fly over the Going Merry, as it sails into the sun, with silhouettes of the Straw Hats smiling and grouped together as they prepared for their adventure.)

Last time:

"Allen! Get out of there!" Xion cried out.

It was too late, as the admiral initiated his attack. "Ice Ball." Next thing everyone knew, Allen was encased in a ball of ice. Seeing this, everyone was speechless at what had occurred, but none were as speechless as Xion, who stood there with wide, shocked eyes.

"Allen!" Guthrie called out.

"You've come across such good friends," Aokiji said, walking over to his first target. "But you're still you, Nico Robin!"

"No...! I'm not..." Robin tried to retort, but couldn't find the courage in her to.

Aokiji had his body fall on top of her and wrapped his arms around her, and turned her to ice.

"Robin!" Chopper cried out.

"You bastard!" Luffy shouted at the admiral.

"Don't yell. She'll still live if you defrost her slowly. Same with that winged boy over there. He's not dead, just trapped. Well, not yet at least," Aokiji told him. "However, Nico Robin's body has become fragile, so be careful. If her body is broken, she'll die. For example..." He raised an arm, to their fear. "If you smash it like this..."

Before he got the chance to, something hit him in the face and actually knocked him away. Not break, but knocked him away.

"Whoa! What the-?!" Usopp gasped.

"D-D-Did you see that?!" Chirithy asked.

"I think I did..." Nami answered.

Aokiji got up, rubbing his face in pain. Wait... Pain? There are only two times when that happened. Well, three actually. The first is if his guard is down. The second is if he was facing a certain opponent with a certain ability. And the third...

He looked up and saw Xion standing right where he was, free from the ice. Not only that, but around her body, he saw what seemed like dark wisps all around her and her Keyblade. The girl was also making what sounded like panting- no, seething sounds.

"How dare you..." Xion... snarled? "How dare you... to my friends... I won't forgive you. I won't forgive you! I'LL KILL YOU!" The girl finally lifted her face and he saw them. The one thing that differentiates the higher-ups, the strongest of that powerful group's members from the others; yellow eyes.

Everyone stood or lied there, frozen in shock at what was going on. Even Aokiji was surprised. He was aware of the danger the girl poses, but he wasn't sure exactly how dangerous she was. No, it wasn't that he wasn't sure; he underestimated her. After his encounter with the organization searching for her, he should've known how powerful she really was, even if she, herself, was unaware.

Xion let out a loud battlecry that one can mistake for as a roar and charged at Aokiji. The guy tried to put up an ice wall like he had done before, only for her to toss her Keyblade, covered in flames, at it. The flaming weapon not only easily broke through the ice, but also struck him hard. And being an ice-element logia-type Devil Fruit user, that hit did some more damage on him.

"Usopp! Chopper! Nami! Take this chance and take Robin and Allen back to the ship!" Luffy ordered, snapping himself out of the fight.

"O-Oh! Right!" Usopp stuttered, also snapping himself out of it, as he, Nami and Chopper, in his Heavy Point form, took the frozen girl and trapped boy back to Merry.

"Luffy! You, Zoro and Sanji should go back too!" Guthrie advised. "You have to get rid of those ice!"

"He's right! Leave Xion and Aokiji to us!" Chirithy added. "And by us, I mean Guthrie!"

"Well of course you did!"

"What are you saying?! You can't take him on your own!" Luffy told him.

"But if you guys fight in your condition, you'd might as well kill yourself!" Guthrie reasoned. "Don't worry! I'll hold him off as long as I could! You just hurry up and get those limbs treated! Now! You can't be a Pirate King if you have only one arm! Same with Zoro and Sanji! If your limbs fall off because you decided to keep fighting this guy, what do you think will happen then?!"

The trio hesitated when he brought that up. Chopper did say earlier that they had to be treated or they would get frostbite.

"Okay. We'll be back soon!" Luffy said, as he, Zoro and Sanji ran back to the ship as fast as they could.

Back to the battle at hand, Aokiji kept trying to avoid Xion's attacks and froze her whenever he could, knowing that it was pointless to block them. However, the girl was attacking swiftly and savagely, especially as the dark aura gathered in her free arm and formed a claw, allowing her to deliver some claw attacks at him.

"Ice Ball!" He tried to use the same move he used on Allen to trap her in ice. At first, the attack landed and trapped her. Unfortunately for him, the ice didn't last long, as she broke free from it, covered in what seemed like black flames.

"Oh my, my... So they weren't kidding after all..." he said, avoiding another hit from Xion.

"Strike Raid!" came Guthrie's voice. Aokiji looked just in time to see Guthrie's own Keyblade, Follow the Wind, closing in on him. He quickly ducked from it and jumped back, as the Keyblade returned to its owner.

The sight of him with a Keyblade made Aokiji widen his eyes in shock. 'It's not just her?' he wondered, as he summoned more ice sabers and blocked Xion's attacks.

'I know I have to stop Xion, but with how things are... I can only hope she can tell who is friend or foe,' Guthrie thought. 'Besides, if I just go after her, who knows what Aokiji would do after. And I highly doubt I can handle both of them by myself. I have to make this work somehow.'

"Spark Blast!" Guthrie pointed his Keyblade at Aokiji and shot out some thunder balls. The balls surrounded Aokiji and came together, giving him quite a shock.

While he was distracted by the shock, Xion followed it up with getting close to his face and smacked her Keyblade in his face, slamming Aokiji to the ground. The admiral used the momentum to flip himself back on his feet and distance himself further from the two Keyblade wielders. And it was then, the strangest thing happened.

"Xion! Assuming you can still hear me-" Guthrie tried to speak, until Xion suddenly got to his face and swung her Keyblade upward. The male chosen managed to block the strike in time and was pushed back. "What the-?! Xion?!"

Xion gave no answer, as she looked up, showing Guthrie the white in her eyes starting to change to yellow, and the dark aura around her Keyblade was slowly starting to change the weapon. The girl let out another battlecry as she charged at Guthrie, much to the latter's surprise as he raised his Keyblade to block her strike. Increasing his surprise even further, she forced him back several feet.

'What the hell?! I don't remember Xion being this strong! Is it because of those black wisps around her?! And her eyes... They were yellow before, but now, it's changing into that of the Heartless.' His eyes widened when he realized one thing as the two clashed blades once more.

"Xion! Don't tell me you're changing into a Heartless!" he shouted.

Rather than answering him, the next thing he knew, Xion swiped him with her 'claws', knocking him in the air. She then fired a black fireball at him, in which he managed to cut away with his Keyblade.

While they were distracted with fighting each other, seeing Xion as the biggest threat, Aokiji used his Devil Fruit Powers to at least try and trap her in ice. "Ice Time Capsule!" He froze the ground in ice, as it made its way towards Xion.

As if sensing the attack coming, the girl took a big leap in the air and landed on the ice, right before him. As the ice made its way up, covering her legs, Xion jabbed her Keyblade forward, in which Aokiji was swift enough to jump back to avoid.

"Try as you will, but you made a mistake landing on my ice. Soon, you will-"

Suddenly, Xion unleashed an orb of light into the air Aokiji felt himself being pulled towards the light. The dark aura around her body quickly thawed her out of the icy prison, as she then leapt into the air and struck the admiral from above, stabbing her Keyblade into him and jumping off him multiple times, forcing him down to the ground. After the last strike that slammed Aokiji down, Xion gathered more dark energy in her claws and shot out a large black orb of dark flames at him.

"Ice Block: Avalanche!" He quickly froze the moisture above him into a giant block of ice, using it as a shield to block the dark flames as he moved away from his spot.

As the two were continuing their battle, Guthrie turned to Chirithy. "Chirithy! What the heck is going on?! What's up with Xion?!" he demanded.

"I... I don't know!" he answered.

"What?! What do you mean 'you don't know'?! You were the one who told me to protect Xion, you told me of the people who are after her, you should know what's going on!"

"Hey, there are things even I don't know!"

A battlecry was heard and Guthrie looked up to see Xion charging in at him again. Just as he raised his Keyblade to block, she suddenly dove into the ground, out of his sight.

Guthrie looked around, seeing no sign of the girl. "Where'd she go?" he asked.

Chirithy also looked around and let out a yelp. "Guthrie! Below you!"

His warning came too late, as Xion came out of Guthrie's shadows and struck the male Keyblade wielder. While he was down, Xion grabbed him by the throat with her claw hand and kept him grounded.

Guthrie gripped her hand, in an attempt to get her to loosen her hold on him at the very least. "Xion! Get a hold of yourself!" he breathed out.

Xion didn't answer as she raised her Keyblade in an attempt to kill him. Before that could come to be, something grabbed her head from behind and got her off him.

"This has gone on long enough. Ice Time!" Before she could managed to free herself, Aokiji froze her entire body into ice, the same way he did to Robin.

"Xion!" Guthrie cried out.

"My, my... That really was a close one," Aokiji stated. Looking over to Guthrie, he then said, "I don't know where you got that weapon boy, or your relationship with this girl, but you should be grateful I froze her when I got the chance. If I hadn't stepped in, you'd definitely die."

Guthrie glared at him when he said that. "You don't know that! Xion is not the kind of person who'd kill a comrade!"

"Yeah, you big meanie!" Chirithy agreed.

"After that fight, you still have faith in her? You should realize by now the kind of danger she is to your crew now," Aokiji said.

"You said the same thing about Robin. Well guess what! I'm not going to throw my friends away for something like this! Whatever that was just now that took over Xion, I'll help her overcome it! That's my job as her teacher, her protector and her friend!" Guthrie declared.

What he said made Aokiji narrow his eyes. "Oh? Is that so? Then I suppose that also makes you a threat as well. However, as much as I want to respect you as a protector, I'm afraid this one here can't afford to live out her life much longer." Aokiji raised Xion's frozen body up and attempted to slam it down to the ground to destroy her.

"Gum Gum Scythe!" Until Luffy came and struck the ice-man from behind, causing Aokiji to release his hold on Xion.

Before she could hit the ground, both Guthrie and Chirithy managed to catch her.

"Luffy?!" the Dream Eater gasped at the sight of the pirate, with his arm still frozen.

"What are you doing here?! I thought I told you to get that arm treated!" Guthrie said.

"Shut up! I'm not going to let my crew members fight an opponent they can't handle alone! I'm captain of this crew, so I don't have to listen to anything you have to say!" Luffy shouted. "You get Xion back to Merry, now!"

Guthrie gritted his teeth and gently put Xion's frozen body down.

"No way, Luffy," he told his captain. "Like you said, he's dangerous to take on alone. And after what he did to Xion, as her protector, it's my responsibility to take down the person who froze her like this. We're teaming up against him, whether you like it or not!"

Luffy paused and looked at him when he said that. A smile formed on his face as he looked back at Aokiji, who pieced himself back together. "Okay. Then we'll fight him together, Guthrie!"

"Aye aye, captain!" he answered.

"Oh my, my... Well this is quite a change of plans," Aokiji said. "No choice then. As a marine, it is my job to capture pirates. While one of you may not have a bounty now, but you may have one in the near future. Especially with that weapon. As I don't have a ship, it should be okay for me to kill you both, right?"

Both Luffy and Guthrie got into battle position, while Chirithy took the frozen Xion to safety.

*MEANWHILE, BACK ON MERRY*

While Nami was on deck, trying to melt the ice trapping Allen with her Heat Balls, Chopper and Usopp are both in the shower room, trying to thaw Robin out with water.

"She... can't breathe, can she?" Usopp asked their doctor.

"I think she's probably in a state of suspended animation," Chopper answered.

"T-Then won't she die if we don't hurry?"

"But if we warm her up rapidly, her body will break. We need to restore her body temperature from the inside."

"I-Is this really going to work?"

"I don't know... But this is the only way."

Usopp panicked when he heard the first half of the response. "You can't say you don't know! Robin's life depends on you!"

Chopper teared up when he said that. "But I've never seen a human whose entire body gets frozen like this!"

"Then what about Allen?! Are you sure it's okay for Nami to use the Heat Balls to melt all that ice?!"

"Unlike Robin, Allen's body is not all iced up! Aokiji said he's only trapped in there, and I've helped Doctorine save people who got themselves trapped in ice! Plus, Aokiji said that she's still alive, but to me, it's surprising that she is!"

"Don't whine! If you can't do anything, then no one can save her! You're the doctor of this ship!"

"I know that! Just shut up for a while!"

"Can you two stop shouting out there?!" Nami shouted from the deck. "Especially you, Usopp! This is not the time to panic! Like you said, Chopper is the doctor here! So shut up, listen to him and help him thaw Robin out!"

"But Nami! We're talking about actually saving lives here!" Usopp shouted back.

"I know that! That's all the more reason why you should shut up and let the doctor do all the worrying and the instructions! If Xion is in your shoes, she'd believe in Chopper and do whatever it takes to save Robin!"

At that, Usopp kept quiet, looking back at Chopper, who continued to splash water on the still frozen Robin. Deciding that hesitating won't do much good much longer, he also continued to splash water on the archeologist.

"Chopper!" came Zoro's voice.

After instructing Usopp to continue splashing Robin, the man-reindeer rushed out the shower room and saw Zoro and Sanji standing by the ship, with their body parts still frozen. There was just one problem; it was only them who came back.

"Huh?! Why is it only two of you?!" he gasped.

"We'll explain later!" Zoro answered. "Hurry up and tell us what to do with these ice so we can go back!"

Realizing how dire the situation, Chopper thought of a solution for them. "Ah, okay! Let's see... We have to melt those frozen areas with water immediately! But we're using the shower room for Robin right now."

"Is she okay?!" Sanji asked.

Chopper paused at his question. "It's still too early to tell."

Splashes were heard and the two looked and saw both the two in the sea.

"Is this okay?!" the chef asked.

"Y-Yeah! Once you melt the ice at low temperature, come up to the ship while rubbing the affected parts!" Chopper instructed.

Some time later, after finally melting the ice off, the two boys returned to deck and rubbed the affected parts with towels. As they did so, Usopp walked out of the shower room.

"Why are you guys here? Where are Luffy, Xion, Guthrie and Chirithy?! What about Aokiji?!" he asked in a panicked tone.

"Guthrie told us to go on ahead. And Luffy went back to help him and Xion-san fight Aokiji before he got his frozen arm treated. Right now, none of us here know what's happening over there," Sanji answered.

"Wait a second! Are you saying you guys left them by themselves?!" Usopp gasped in disbelief.

"Captain's orders."

"So what?! Even if it is a captain's order, you shouldn't have left them alone like that! You're being a little too cold-hearted here! Right now, Xion and Guthrie are-!"

"Shut up!" Sanji snapped, pushing the guy to a wall. "It's a captain's order! Don't you get it!"

"Stop it! This is no time for that!" Zoro told them.

The guys went silent at his voice.

"Right now... We're in a huge crisis... Whatever comes next, be prepared for it."

*BACK TO GUTHRIE'S GROUP*

How could this have happened? Was he actually this strong? Or could it be that they got weaker? No... Robin said it herself; this man is one of the strongest Marines in the world. How they was still alive at this point is a wonder for him, especially when some parts of their body are covered in ice.

"Oh my, my... And here I thought it was Straw Hat who is the only odd one in this crew," Aokiji stated, looking down at the half-frozen pirates.

"Guthrie! You can beat him! Fight!" Chirithy cheered, still trying to take care of Xion's frozen body.

As if responding to the cheer, both Luffy and Guthrie charged at their opponent with their fist and Keyblade.

"Sonic Blade!" The male chosen then rushed at the admiral, intending to jab his blade right through him.

Aokiji simply called upon an ice wall, causing Guthrie's Keyblade to imbed itself and get stuck in it.

Luffy, on the other hand, used his crew mate as a stepping stone and got over the wall and landed on the other side of Aokiji. As the admiral was about to grab and freeze the pirate, Luffy managed to avoid the hand and kicked him in the air. The captain then inhaled a lot of air in him and rotated his body. Once he was at his limit, he exhaled all the air and shot himself into the air. "Gum Gum... Storm!"

Unfortunately, while he did manage to land a barrage of punches at the admiral, like before, Aokiji shattered in ice shards. The marine then reformed himself and wrapped an arm around Luffy. "Ice Time..." Like Robin and Xion, Aokiji also froze Luffy's body in ice.

"Luffy!" Guthrie cried out in shock, finally managing to get Follow the Wind out of the ice.

Aokiji landed on the ground and placed the frozen male pirate down. "And then there was one... Would you like to try your luck? I won't ridicule you if you decide to give up."

"Guthrie..." Chirithy breathed out in worry.

Guthrie tightened his grip around his Keyblade, trying calm himself and not tremble before this tall man before him. With a loud battlecry, he charged at Aokiji again.

"Ice Block: Partisan!" The ice-man created several spears of ice and hurled them at Guthrie.

The Straw Hat counselor blocked them all and made an attempt to strike Aokiji down, only to see that the guy made icicle copies of himself and even turned himself into ice.

"What the-?! Which one is the real deal?!" he asked.

"Ice Dart," came a voice from behind. Guthrie turned in time to see what seemed like a dart made of ice close in on him and leaned back to avoid it. After avoiding it, he saw that there were more ice copies of Aokiji behind him.

"What the hell...?" he breathed out.

"Ice Clones," came Aokiji's voice. "Try as you might, but no matter how good you are, your attacks don't mean a thing if they can't hit me."

"Shut up! Just watch me, if that's what you really think!" Guthrie exclaimed.

"I don't need to; I already have you." Those words confused Guthrie, until... "Ice Ball." He felt a chill cover his body and looked down to see his body in a ball of ice, similar to Allen's situation.

"W-What just... happened...?" he asked, chattering his teeth from the cold.

"Guthrie!" Chirithy cried out in shock.

"What else does it look like? You're trapped. This fight... is my win." Guthrie turned his head and saw Aokiji sitting down a few feet from him, head on his palm with the elbow on his knee. "You seem quite desperate to protect and save Nico Robin and Starlight Blade. Both you and Monkey D. Luffy. Well, if you want to protect those two that badly, then who am I to stop you any longer? However, let me warn you with this; In the future, both Nico Robin and Starlight Blade will grow. One day they'll be too much for you all to handle. None of you will be able to shoulder the burden of the brutal fate both are born into. Both are being targeted by powerful enemies right now that you have no hope of beating in the level of power you have. I can tell you right now that they are soon to strike at the two, and it'll be like chasing after two bears who are hunting two rabbits. Either you save one while the other dies, or you get killed trying to save both. That's what it means to be associated with them, boy."

"W-Why are you telling me this?" Guthrie asked.

"Well... As much as I want to do my job as a marine and arrest or kill you all, we still owe your captain there." The Straw Hat counselor looked over to the frozen Luffy when he said that. "That guy suppressed a former exceptional pirate we've allied ourselves with, one that actually had an evil intention behind our back." Aokiji got up from his spot and walked away. "Give your captain my thanks. And tell him to cancel our debt for what he had done to Crocodile. And also... No, actually. I don't have to talk about that idiot Smoker. See you guys around."

Just as he was out of sight, Zoro and Sanji came.

"There they are!" the former shouted.

"Luffy! Guthrie! Chirithy! Xion-san!" the latter called.

"Guys! Help us out here!" Guthrie called out to them.

Once they managed to free Guthrie from his icy prison, somehow, the guys brought Xion and Luffy back to Merry as fast as they could to get them both thawed and treated as fast as possible.

The operation was long, even for Chopper to handle. Everyone else waited on deck, hoping the they and Robin are okay. Nami got Allen free from his ice ball and the shivering dancer was wrapped in blankets and warm towels and sat near a working Flame Dial, trying to get himself all warmed up from the heat. Guthrie wasn't as bad, but he also had a blanket wrapped around him for warmth.

After a while, Chopper slammed the door open, all teary eyed. "T-The three of them... Their hearts... Started beating!" he announced.

Everyone was so glad to hear the news, they jumped in sheer joy. Sanji and Usopp were the happiest and most relieved, as they attempted to rush in to see the three former icicles' condition.

"You can't go inside yet! You'll make a racket!" Chopper told them, going into his Heavy Point to stop the two from advancing.

"Hey, Dr. Chopper. I'll make something for them," Sanji bribed.

"Y-You calling me 'doctor' doesn't make me happy, you jerk!" Chopper lied, going into his Brain Point and doing his little dance. "Ah! When they wake up, some drinks that can warm them up would be good. I'll carry them to the lounge later."

"Aye aye, sir!" With that, Sanji went to the kitchen to get something ready for the patients.

"But still, it's a relief..." Allen said. "I was really worried there, especially for Xion. She was still recovering from what happened in Sky Island after all. And for her to just suddenly get into another action like that..."

"I know. And I checked Xion-nee's arms. Thankfully, that fight didn't do anything to strain them even more," Chopper told him.

"That's good."

"Nami, are we setting sail?" Zoro asked the navigator.

"No, we aren't. Not with our captain and vice-captain like that," Nami answered. "We've got the log, but let's just stay here for today."

"She has a point. It'll be too dangerous to set sail and run into more trouble while we have patients," Chirithy agreed. "We should take this time to relax."

Something caught Zoro's eyes and he looked to see Usopp slumped to the floor. "What's the matter, Usopp? You feeling drained?"

"I wonder if strong guys like him are coming after us from now on... All I did was get flustered," he answered.

When he said that, Guthrie, who had his attention to the floor this whole time in silence, narrowed his eyes. He looked at his hand and turned his attention to the med bay.

"Get some sleep, you idiot. You're exhausted," Zoro advised their sniper.

Chopper then approached Guthrie and Chirithy. "Hey, Guthrie, Chirithy. Can I talk to you two for a moment?"

"I'll do the talking. Guthrie has to rest easy and get warm," the Dream Eater said, following Chopper to one side of the deck.

"Did something happen to Xion-nee?" the Devil Fruit user asked.

"In what way?" Chirithy asked, wondering if he meant in general or if Aokiji did something weird to her.

"It's just, when you brought her here, Xion-nee's arm kind of looked like a monster's, right? Yet, when Usopp and I got her out of the ice, her arm was as normal as can be. I'm pretty sure Aokiji used the same ice-imprisonment technique he used on Robin, and yet the fact that he made the arm look scary..."

Chirithy's eyes widened a bit in shock, knowing what Chopper was trying to say. In truth, he was actually worried he and Guthrie had to tell the crew what happened to Xion while they were gone. But to hear that whatever transformation occurred to her was undone brought him relief in more ways than one.

"Might be some sort of hobby," he lied.

"Yeah, that might be possible," Chopper accepted.

Meanwhile, Allen looked over to Guthrie, noticing how quiet he was. "Is something on your mind, Guthrie?" he asked.

"Hm? Oh, no. It's nothing really," he lied.

Allen looked down and around, noticing none of the other crew members were paying much attention to them. He then asked in a whispered tone, "Xion... didn't go on a rampage, did she?"

Hearing that question surprised Guthrie as he turned to the winged-pirate. "How did you...?"

"I'd be lying if I said I heard from in that ice Aokiji trapped me in. But, when you guys brought her on board, some parts of her weren't human. I don't know if anyone else noticed it, but that form... looked familiar. It was similar to the form she took back in Upper Yard, when we were making our way to the ruins. A bunch of Heartless got in the way and she wanted to get there as soon as possible... especially because something happened to Chopper at that time. But then... she did one of those links with her Dream Eaters, took on a form similar to that, and... She just wasn't herself."

Guthrie was surprised to hear that this wasn't the first time it happened. In fact, with how crazy Xion was at the time, he was shocked to know that Allen was even okay after that.

"Guthrie... What you saw back there, promise me you won't tell Xion," Allen requested, much to the counselor's surprise. "I know you think we should, but if we tell Xion the truth, it'll make her more worried. She was worried enough about being targeted by that organization. If she hears what may be the reason for them going after her, she'd leave. Either that, or she'd try to use that power against them and never come back." The dancer looked back to the med bay. "I've been with her long enough. Around the second half of our time together, before she suddenly left, she looked like she had a heavy burden on her and always looked so sad. I don't want to see her with that face again. Promise me. You won't say a word about what happened back there or this conversation to her."

Seeing the guy look at him with a serious demeanor made Guthrie hesitate. He had planned on telling Xion about it and offer to help her in some way to control it, but to hear Allen request that and give that reason... While the male chosen felt it was right to tell Xion, at the same time, with what Allen had told him, he couldn't find it in him to want to tell the girl of the fight.

"... I promise," he finally said.

That night, everyone all rested at the lounge, wanting to be by their now-healed crewmates' sides until they were 100% better. While most were sleeping peacefully, with Luffy already showing signs of full recovery as he was disheveled on his bed, Guthrie sat on Robin's bedside. While he was aware of Xion's situation, being her appointed guardian, he didn't know about Robin's. Everything Aokiji said about her was really bothering him and made him worry about her.

"Hey, Guthrie..." came a whisper. The Keyblade wielder looked to see Chirithy wandering over to him, frowning at his partner. "Why aren't you with Xion, right now? You should be tending to her instead of this one."

"She's fine. She's recovered, and Allen's looking after her," Guthrie answered, looking over to the sleeping Skypiean on Xion's bedside, his head resting right by Xion's pillow. "And we can see Luffy is a-okay. Robin needs someone to take care of her while she is like this, so I'll stay and tend to her."

These words, for some reason, irritated Chirithy. "Why are you considering the life of this woman over the one you are SUPPOSE to protect?! She is not as big of a liability as Xion! It's about time you realize why you came to this world in the first place!"

Hearing this angered Guthrie as he stood up and grabbed the Dream Eater by his cape, much to the latter's surprise, as they made their way out the room and to the deck.

"Hey! Put me down, idiot!" Chirithy called as silently as possible, so as to not wake anyone else up.

Once they were at a good distance away from the crew, Guthrie dropped and glared down at the Spirit, growling, "Don't you dare talk about Robin that way! Every life is important, even Robin's! Stop constantly telling me to go to Xion's side all the time!"

"But that is your duty!" Chirithy barked, hopping onto a nearby barrel to get closer to eye-level with Guthrie. "You are the guardian who is suppose to protect Xion from Organization XIII! And yet, you spend more of your time protecting that woman over her! Haven't you already found out how difficult the opponents are so far?! Look at your fight with Larxene! Look at the one with Aokiji! Both of those fights were prompted by the fact that they were targeting this woman, and you-!"

Guthrie stepped up and smacked Chirithy across the face with his fist, knocking him off the barrel and over to the mast. "Stop calling her 'this woman' and 'that woman'! Her name is Nico Robin!" he barked. "You know, I am sick and tired of you constantly demoting the rest of the crew, only focusing on me and my duties to protect Xion! You think I fight those kind of people just for her sake?! I fight for the crew, and that includes Robin! What's wrong with caring for more than one person?!"

Chirithy got back up to his feet, glaring at his so-called partner, frustrated with his lack of dedication. One the flip side, Guthrie was absolutely tired of his constant obsession and prodding him to fight only to protect Xion. It's like he didn't even care what group Xion joined into, as the people in it were just insignificant compared to her.

"If you wanna have someone protect Xion, then why don't you do the job, instead of forcing me to do it?!" the Keyblade wielder demanded. "You obviously care more for her than anyone else in this crew. As for me, I'll follow my own heart, and choose to help Robin in this situation!"

"You know what? Fine! You obviously forgotten why you came to this world in the first place. Either that, or you don't care enough to fulfill your duties. You wanna protect that archeologist so badly, then do it without my help!" He poofed away, leaving Guthrie fuming with anger at his partner's stubbornness.

For a short while, there was silence as he tried to calm himself down. He leaned against the rails, thinking. He cared for Robin, as well as the rest of the crew. What's wrong with that? What's the deal with not just wanting to protect Xion? Aokiji's last words echoed into his head once again at these questions.

"If you want to protect those two that badly, then who am I to stop you any longer? However, let me warn you with this; in the future, both Nico Robin and Starlight Blade will grow. One day they'll be too much for you all to handle. None of you will be able to shoulder the burden of the brutal fate both are born into. Both are being targeted by powerful enemies right now that you have no hope of beating in the level of power you have. I can tell you right now that they are soon to strike at the two, and it'll be like chasing after two bears who are hunting two rabbits. Either you save one while the other dies, or you get killed trying to save both. "

As sad as it was to say, he was right. After fighting Larxene and Aokiji, he realized how pathetic he was compared to them. Larxene was defeated by Xion, and Aokiji just let them live. He was pretty much helpless against the two opponents. He had to grow stronger in order to beat people like them, otherwise what good would he be to protect anyone. He might as well throw his life away to save them.

With those thoughts in mind, Guthrie walked back to the lounge and took his place back by Robin's side.

"Guthrie..." The Keyblade wielder looked around, and was startled to see Robin was awake. In truth, she had been awake since he and Chirithy left and used her Devil Fruit powers to eavesdrop on the argument.

"Robin! You're awake!" he stated, relieved to see her conscious.

Robin paused for a second, then said, "Please... don't worry about me. I don't want to be the reason you and Chirithy separate. He's right by saying that Xion is a bigger liability than me... I'm just a burden to you all."

The words hurt Guthrie, hearing Robin demote herself like this. He shook his head and replied, "That's not true. You are not a burden at all. Don't you dare say that, okay?"

"But I am..." Robin answered, her eyes quivering in hidden fear. "You heard Aokiji. I have been nothing but a curse to people's lives. Soon, I might bring something that'll cause all of you to die for me. I... I don't want that."

"Enough." Robin looked back up at Guthrie, who looked down at her with a determined expression. "Look, I can tell you have had a life that was painful and dangerous. I don't need to be a counselor to acknowledge that. However, I do know this; if your enemies are too strong for me to handle, then I'll just have to amp up my game and get stronger. I'm still trying to understand why you are so important, but I am not gonna give up on you. If the darkness tries to consume you, I will be the light that protects you, Robin. You'll always have me by your side, through thick and thin."

Robin felt touched by his words, and she could tell he was honest about what he had said. However, she knew the kind of enemies that pursuing her for twenty years, and knew that he, Xion, and the rest of the Straw Hats, had no chance on beating it. Especially not when Xion has a target on her back as well, and a much bigger one at that. She only prayed that they wouldn't deal with her past soon.

"Come on," Guthrie smiled assuringly at Robin. "Get some more sleep. You did manage to escape death from frost." The archeologist simply nodded and shut her eyes. As she did so, Guthrie also closed his own eyes, and decided to let sleep do its work.